President Donald Trump will sign two executive orders on Wednesday, including one calling for a “large physical barrier” on the border with Mexico, the White House announced.

Press secretary Sean Spicer said the second order would tighten immigration enforcement inside the U.S., in part by trying to compel local law-enforcement agencies to turn over undocumented immigrants to federal authorities.

To do that, the new administration would restore the controversial Secure Communities program that facilitates this cooperation, which former President Barack Obama ended. It also plans to try and strip federal grant funding from so-called sanctuary cities that “harbor illegal immigrants,” Mr. Spicer said.

“One way or another, as the president has said before, Mexico will pay for it,” said Spicer.

“Big day planned on NATIONAL SECURITY tomorrow,” Mr. Trump said on Twitter Tuesday evening. “Among many other things, we will build the wall!”

A White House official on Wednesday confirmed that Mr. Trump will sign at least two orders later in the day. One would redirect existing appropriations to pay for a wall, while a second deals with border security and immigration enforcement inside the U.S., the official said.

Other executive actions involving the refugee program and immigration from nations deemed terror risks are expected Thursday, people familiar with the planning said.

Mr. Trump has given few details about his promise for a border wall, a project that is estimated to cost as much as $10 billion and possibly much more. Congressional Republicans have been considering appropriating funds in spending legislation that must pass by April to keep the government funded.

In hopes of beginning work sooner, Mr. Trump is expected to divert tens of millions of dollars in unspent allocations, said a second person familiar with the planning. Congressional leaders pointed Mr. Trump and his team to the money that may be available to be spent on border security, the person said.

Mexicans reacted angrily to news U.S. President Donald Trump would unveil details Wednesday of his plan to build a border wall between both nations, particularly since the announcement comes on the day top Mexican officials meet with U.S. administration representatives to discuss the troubled bilateral relationship.

“This is an insult to those Mexican officials, to the president of Mexico and to all Mexicans,” Jorge Castaneda, a former foreign minister, said in a televised interview. “It’s a way of making them negotiate under threat, under insults, and it should lead (Mexican) President (Enrique) Peña Nieto to cancel his trip next week.”

Mr. Peña Nieto is extremely unpopular at home, registering the lowest approval ratings of any Mexican president in recent memory. He will be under enormous pressure not to be seen as kowtowing to the new U.S. administration.

“I already thought that Peña Nieto shouldn’t go, and with the issue of the wall, it would be a big mistake,” said Alejandro Schtulmann, head of analysis at the Empra consulting firm. “If he goes there with nothing tangible, it will be seen in Mexico as an act of submission.”

While Mr. Trump has threatened to leave Nafta, which he has called the worst trade deal in U.S. history, Mexican officials have also started to raise the stakes.

In an interview Tuesday with Mexico’s Televisa network, Mr. Guajardo [Economy Minister Ildefonso Guajardo] said Mexico would have no choice but to leave Nafta if the negotiations proved detrimental to the country.

“If we go for something that’s less than what we have, it doesn’t make sense to stay,” the economy minister said. “It’s impossible to sell it here at home of there aren’t clear benefits for Mexico.”

Mr. Guajardo said that Mexico could leave the talks if the U.S. taxes or blocks remittances from Mexicans in the U.S., or if the U.S. tries to force Mexico to pay for the border wall.

“What they do or don’t do on their side of the border is their problem, (but) obviously never with Mexican budget money,” he said.

Nationalism in Mexico could make a big comeback. Already, leftist nationalist politician Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador is rising in the polls ahead of the 2018 presidential election and is seen as the early favorite.

The country’s largest source of cash comes from Mexicans living in the United States. That is now under the microscope after Trump issued an executive order Wednesday to start building a wall on the border.

During his campaign, Trump said multiple times that Mexico will pay for the wall. He even threatened to halt or tax cash transfers — known as remittances — from the U.S. to Mexico if the country refused to pay for it.

“They will reimburse us for the cost of the wall. That will happen, whether it’s a tax or a payment — probably less likely that it’s a payment, but it will happen,” Trump said on January 11.

But Mexico’s president won’t stand for it.

“We must assure the free flow of remittances,” President Enrique Pena Nieto said Monday. Remittances are “an invaluable contribution to national development and indispensable for millions of Mexican families.”

Between January and November of 2016, $24.6 billion flowed back to the pockets of Mexicans from friends and relatives living overseas, according to Mexico’s central bank.

That’s even higher than what Mexico earns from its oil exports — $23.2 billion in 2015. And almost all of that cash comes from the U.S.

The average remittance from Mexico is about $300. Essentially, Mexico’s most lucrative natural resource are the people who leave home.

Short Term vs. Long Term

Short term, constructing a wall may add some jobs, perhaps. But longer term, the US will lose jobs over these actions.

Destroying a trading partner cannot be a good thing. But that’s about to happen.

Addendum

Reader JC writes …

I’m confused on your position with this one. Illegal immigration is costing billions of dollars for Texas alone. 20% of our students need to be taught English. Hospitals are dragged down by uninsured illegals and many illegals commit crimes returning over and over again after being thrown out of the country. Border towns have lost control to the Mexican gangs. This issue has been getting worse for decades with no end in sight. Why is building a wall such a bad thing and why should we be overly concerned about how Mexico feels about it? They clearly benefit more than we do from the current arrangement and relationships can be healed later.

The problem is not the lack of a wall that keeps people out. The problem is handing out free benefits to illegal aliens, the primary reason they come.

The wall is actually a minor cost. In the grand scheme of things, spending $10 to $20 billion on a wall isn’t that meaningful. Certainly I would rather spend money on a wall than bombing seven countries as we did in 2016 under Obama.

As for NAFTA, Trump is seriously wrong. NAFTA is not the source of the loss of US manufacturing jobs. Automation took most of them. Fundamentally, Nixon closing the gold window is what enabled both a destructive credit binge, and the outsourcing of jobs that did take place.

Finally, and as I stated above, it cannot be a good policy to destroy a trading partner. Placing an import tax on vehicles produced in Mexico and dismantling NAFTA will do just that.

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I’m 100% behind Trump on this.
None of our kids could ever find summer jobs, all already filled by adult Mexicans.
Remember Kate Steinle. She’s not the only victim, not by a long shot.
And you know that in 10 years all the illegal employers will skate free while the rest of us are taxed for reparations to illegals who were “exploited” by “America”. Haven’t they already hired tons of Spanish speaking federal workers to administer benefits to illegals?

The problem is indeed “free benefits” for illegal aliens–namely American jobs and wages. 90% of the factory jobs in my hometown left post-NAFTA. If even a third of those jobs come back because production for the American market is forced to return to America where it belongs, my home town might not be a meth, heroin and cocaine swamped wasteland anymore. And if fat cat investors get hurt by that, oh well.

Trump is not destroying a trading partner; he is negotiating with them. Nearly every negotiation starts like this, with two very different positions. And each side tries to communicate that they are negotiating from a position of strength. But usually, one side realizes they have the weaker position and they concede. Or, they identify what their opponent wants most and they bargain with this to gain a lot for themselves. In this case, Trump wants the wall.

The wall cost is small in the bigger picture. If Mexico was smart, they would pay for the wall in exchange for a very beneficial trade deal. They should use Trump’s ego and desire to fulfill this campaign promise as their best bargaining chip to get what they need. There can be a win-win here.

Mish, you’ll find that a great many assumptions will come crashing down about “free trade”. Any nation that embraces it ultimately comes crashing down as two things occur:

1. Native populations are crushed economically as immigration distorts and depresses wages (and depletes public spending for those nations with welfare) Culture is eroded and again native populations suffer.

2. Without control over imports, capital will leave seeking the cheapest labor possible to maximize profits.

Both of these are great for business and the owners of capital, but bad for nations and the non-owners of capital. When that situation gets out of whack you get creations like the guillotine. This is far more peaceful.

Consider the example of Russia during the recent trade embargo. It forced them to develop their own industries, build their own capital bases, and their population had to make do until they found domestic goods. How are they performing economically now?

Consider Japan. While they severely restrict immigration, their adherence to keynesian economics has nearly neutered their population and culture.

Why continue to tinker with theories that have shown (finally!) their fundamental weaknesses?

Most people thought that once in office he would back away from some of his ideas because they would be so disasterously bad for the country. Apparently he’s going to do them anyway, and we shall see what happens.

I personally don’t have a problem with a wall. If you can’t control your borders, you can’t have an immigration policy at all, so if a wall helps, I have no problem with it. I do have a problem with moving away from free trade, however, as the result will be declining standards of living for all.

Consider Air-way vacuum, the inventor of the vacuum bag. They were a leading maker of vacuums 80 years ago. As companies outsourced manufacturing overseas, and they kept manufacturing in the US, their prices rose, while others fell. Few wanted to buy an $800 vacuum when they could get about the same thing for $100, so they closed. Now, suppose that taxes prevented outsourcing. Yes, the would most likely still be around because all vacuums would cost $800, and they could compete just fine. That would mean a few more jobs in the US, and those particular people would be better off. But, what about all the vacuum buyers? They would have to pay $800 for what they buy today for $100, and they would all be worse off. Worse, since their vacuum cost $800, that would leave them $700 less to spend on other things, so other jobs would vanish.

I don’t think he forgot that workers are also consumers, he’s just exaggerating the claim.

How many hours does it take to build a vacuum cleaner?
I don’t know, but it doesn’t really matter.

Say 5 workers can build 10 vacuum cleaners in an hour
If you pay them $5 in Mexico or $15 in the USA, that’s $50 for the production of 10 cleaners.
What’s $5 on the price of a $100 vacuum cleaner, and who cares?
Better to have them made here and save on welfare.

Sure, you’d take jobs from Mexicans who may then try to come to the USA and undercut us, but if we had a wall that possibility could be nipped.

Your point is taken but it really isn’t that simple: You gotta factor in the cost of building the factory, the cost of land, the entire cost of the staff running the joint (admin, management etc), the cost of utilities, the regulatory cost to business (of which there are a ridiculous number in the US). Low-skilled staff costs barely feature in the analysis.

Build a wall to keep illegals (and terrorists) from entering our country without our permission – outrageous! Give me a break. The RULE OF LAW must return to America if America is to survive – it’s that simple.

CNN Money reports… “The country’s largest source of cash comes from Mexicans living in the United States.” The US should aid our neighbors to the south by helping them develop their own billion dollar cannabis & hemp industries – as well as livestock, poultry etc. Bringing this control back to the people on the local level may help end the corruption.

Why should we spend our money to help a country that doesn’t help itself. The Mexican gov’t gets a fortune in revenues from oil and other resources, they just don’t spend it in a way that expands the economy. If they misspend their money, why should we spend our money on them. That just encourages the corruption. If we deport 11 million that have lived under a less corrupt gov’t back to Mexico, that might actually change something in Mexico. They would probably throw a fit. That is what Mexico most fears.

Why should the U.S. subsidize other countries? Shouldn’t we encourage countries to be self sufficient with policies that promote that goal. How many people can we realistically support when we are already deep in debt? Open borders are irrational.

I’m confused on your position with this one. Illegal immigration is costing billions of dollars for Texas alone. 20% of our students need to be taught English. Hospitals are dragged down by uninsured illegals and many illegals commit crimes returning over and over again after being thrown out of the country. Border towns have lost control to the Mexican gangs. This issue has been getting worse for decades with no end in sight. Why is building a wall such a bad thing and why should we be overly concerned about how Mexico feels about it? They clearly benefit more than we do from the current arrangement and relationships can be healed later….

The problem is not the lack of a wall that keeps people out. The problem is handing out free benefits to illegal aliens, the primary reason they come.

The wall is actually a minor cost. In the grand scheme of things, spending $10 to $20 billion on a wall isn’t that meaningful. Certainly I would rather spend money on a wall than bombing seven countries as we did in 2106 under Obama.

As for NAFTA, Trump is seriously wrong. NAFTA is not the source of the loss of US manufacturing jobs. Automation took most of them. Fundamentally, Nixon closing the gold window is what enabled both a destructive credit binge, and the outsourcing of jobs that did take place.

Finally, and as I stated above, it cannot be a good policy to destroy a trading partner. Placing an import tax on vehicles produced in Mexico and dismantling NAFTA will do just that.

Trump can’t stop benefits on his own. Years ago California passed Prop 187 that would’ve stopped benefits to illegals. One black robed fool objected and overturned the vote of the people. But Trump CAN stop federal funding and build a wall with executive orders. Trump is using whatever authority he has to enforce immigration law, as he promised us.

So let’s give the man the full credit that he deserves at his 5th day in office!

Agree that it is attacking the symptom. But we’ve consistently demonstrated that we are unwilling to tackle the cause by enforcing the law. By shutting down the influx of new illegals, we can at least stop the problem from getting worse. That, and the crimes along the border stop. I’m not a big Trump fan and I agree with almost everything you are saying. In this case, I think we need a “shock to the system”. Throw out all the political correctness and expose this problem for what it is. Make everyone take sides and defend their position. The current situation is just too irrational and having the POTUS stomp his feet may be just what is needed to get things under control. I just don’t see anything wrong with insisting on our sovereignty and if being a jerk about it gets the job done, so be it.

Mish, its more than trade. This is also about security. You do not destroy culture and security in the name of trade. Only one thing will make liberals hate trump more than they do now. He does wbat he promised to do.

You stated correctly that closing the gold window allowed the credit binge, but how do you put the genie back in the bottle? No one has a workable solution for that short of a economic nuclear option. Realistically, it will end there anyways someday, but no one is willing to pull the trigger, now.

My problem is personal. My wife is hispanic and her parents and seven brothers and sister are all legal. Now, we get all types of visitors for different purposes. Its just the the brother and sister’s in law were illegal. Now, some nieces and nephews were born here and their kids are legal too. I am swamped. From my wife, kick every illegal back, “dreamer or a cousin”.

We have two grown kids of our own. Can’t talk it anymore. Have you ever tried to buy a Christmas present for everyone the size of San Antonio? That’s what it feels like. Of course, some come and go when they need to make money to send home or have a kid.

I can’t take the invasion any more. I WAS going to retire, but now I directly support 3 legals in their 90’s. Send the illegals back. Please Mr. Trump. Have a heart. We stopped at 2 kids for a reason. It was not health. The “illegals” are killing me.Parties in my house and pool and my taxes are through the roof. It is “cruel and unusual punishment” to make me host weddings, Cinco de Mayo, birthdays, and every holiday. It’s family. What do you want me to do.
Say “no”? Secure the damn border and enforce the law.

Perot was right about NAFTA, and it was not due to automation. What got us here is immaterial at this point. Benefits have nothing to do with human & drug trafficing, or terrorist having easy access to targets in the US. Destruction of trading partners is relative. Other countries have an equal responsibility not to destroy us as a trading partner.

Wait, you mean a crash down to reasonable prices so that working families can then afford to pay their rent or buy a place? There should not be so much illegal activity in a market that it actually affects prices and the sooner it’s removed. And BTW, after 10 years at zero interest rates, there’s already a horrendous bubble that will crash regardless of what is done.

OOPS….$20+ TRILLION IN DEBT ON THE “BOOKS”, +$100 TRILLION in TOTAL DEBT….ALL UNPAYABLE.

Who are you fooling ? This whole economy is based on USURY INTEREST RATES FOR the COMMON SHMUCK (credit cards), 2+ people working their asses off for what ONE person could have made a generation or two ago, NO interest for savers, LOW interest rates for BIG corporations and Politicians, shitty educational system, MONOPOLIES IN EVERY INDUSTRY STRANGLING competition and SHITTING all over the working classes, a corrupt and criminal ruling class controlling the high paid lobbyist whores masquerading as elected officials of the “people”, MEDIA MIND CONTROL, using our military as a HESSION force to go fight and die wherever the 1/10th of 1% need them to go for their OWN self interests, beating the shit out of any country they can that dares to try and escape from the US WORLD RESERVE CURRENCY system, ETC. Oh, and I forgot, a FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM that is a privately owned monopoly that can best be described as the BIGGEST INSIDER TRADING SCAM IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD.

The whole PUSS ROTTING SYSTEM IS TEETERING ON THE EDGE and YOU are worried about the “Real Estate” market ?

Forget about reality. Go back to sleep. What difference does it make ?

Never in all my years have I felt so ‘over’ the real estate obsession we have in the West.

My hope, before I pass away, is that I get to see every greedy, real-estate-obsessed prick financially eviscerated. These morons deserve grinding poverty as penance for their pig-ignorance.

There is simply nothing more nauseating and morally corrupt than the real estate get-rich-quick scam. For the sake of my children, I’d like to see a return to a world in which a house is simply a place to sleep and savings are committed to genuine productive endeavour.

I support my father and mother in law in the USA. They are legal. Try to sell a house across the border and see how it goes. If it is vacant, the gangs and druggies move in. Try to rent it, its a shamble and no payment. Thus, we now have a “dump” that would have been nice for a getaway. Do you think this gringo would last very long on vacation?
Sorry, I would rather live in the USA and figure out how to unload it.

Safe zones mean boots on ground in Middle East. Better to allow safety here by admitting refugees than to undertake to protect them there, as Trump seems poised to do.
Trump will have us bleeding overseas.

another Cal
story is he at a medium size town participating in a rally. the local pooh-bah introducing him was gifting Cal locally produced wood cane. In the introduction the pooh-bah went on and on about the superior qualities of the hickory cane he was gifting to Cal.

the story goes Cal accepted the gift cane, quietly studied it, stepped up the lecture , said one word ‘oak’ and walked off the stage.

Actually, Mexico has a wall(s) on its southern border to keep immigrants out of Mexico. It is ironic that the Mexican government is complaining about the US taking a similar action.

Seriously, though, who is going to pick the crops, do the lawns, care for the elderly, etc. if we kick the Mexicans out? There is no way that the hood rats are going to work in the fields and they don’t have the skills necessary to do construction, landscaping, etc. (or the work ethic).

The important point is that a united Germany is a much larger Welfare State than West Germany ever was. If Merkel et al can curry favor with east German voters, they will sell whatever free market Germans remain down the river. The EU in a nutshell.

I agree. No need for a wall. Just bring home our military spread out in over 100+ countries and let them defend our borders like EISENHOWER did back in the 50’s in TEXAS. IT WAS ALL OVER BEFORE IT BEGAN.

And if you like it so much, get yourself some GOOD REAL ESTATE IN A BORDER TOWN IN TEXAS and then let us know how much you like it.

Finally a President who is honoring his sworn oath to uphold the laws and defend the US Constitution!!!

What a concept!!!

About time these rogue cities that have spit in the face of Federal law on immigration. Obama went after Arizona that was merely trying to protect their citizens from an open border. Turnabout is fair play. Now Trump is going after the sanctuary cities.

“Finally a President who is honoring his sworn oath to uphold the laws and defend the US Constitution!!!”
Defend the constitution,,,, that would mean stopping unconstitutional,spending,,, things like Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, welfare etc….

“Color me wrong. I thought sanity regarding a US-Mexican wall would prevail after the election.” Why did you think sanity would prevail. Sanity presumes that you are seeing the world as it is, not seeing the alternate facts

I love it! How to pay?
EazyPeazy:
$500 for each semitrailer coming across our border. $250 for each P/U truck. $100 for each car PLUS…$25 for each person. BOOM! Paid for – or at least alot of it. And, to be fair – the Mexicans can charge all Americans the same $$ going their way….

” The problem is handing out free benefits to illegal aliens, the primary reason they come. ”

No it isn’t. Most Mexicans want to work and better their lives.

The primary reason they come is to escape the Marxist hellhole that is Mexico; if you aren’t a crony you’re untermensch and the Mexican government is happy to be rid of you, especially if you’re going to send money back.

I somewhat agree that free trade is beneficial for both sides. But you have to realize that one side is a Marxist regime that gets to decide who can trade with the US. So the benefits on that side flow to Marxist government more than it flows to individuals.

My family has a very close friend that used to take in Mexican foreign exchange students. These were middle class Mexicans, they could go back to a comfortable life in Mexico when they were done. And every one of them did. And ALL of them emigrated back to the US before they turned 30 (legally) to escape the corruption and taxation. And that was the middle class! The lower classes in Mexico would still come here illegally without the US welfare state.

Nobody flees Illinois because the welfare is so much better in Indiana. The same is true with Mexicans.

30,000 deaths in the United States last year from opioids.It’s time to take half of the money we spend for drug enforcement and legalize the stuff and starve the Mexican drug lords. Mexico is a failed state and were becoming one too.

Democrats fear losing voting blocs. Everyone says there is no voter fraud including California and New York. Really. Trump is saying what others are afraid to say. Voter fraud is like climate change. Only one viewpoint allowed.

Consider the meaning of these phrases “creating a mutually beneficial relationship” versus “destroying a trade partner” versus “removing a leech.”

A mutually beneficial trade works for both sides. It’s the very essence of the free market. Sure, we want mutually beneficial trades.

A leech, however, takes more from its’ host without returning anything of significant value (and, in fact, sometimes causes illness or disease and, in sufficient quantity, can weaken the host to the point of death).

Then there’s the notion of “destroying” a trade partner. Nobody is talking about not buying oil and gas from Mexico. Nobody is saying we can’t trade with them. Heck, there’s a booming market for hecho en Mexico Coca-Cola made with real sugar that can’t be imported to the US because of massive sugar tariffs which were, in fact, intended to destroy certain Caribbean governments and economies. This is why we now have high-fructose corn syrup instead of sugar in most products. But the point is, protecting ourselves isn’t seeking to destroy Mexico.

I think this will ultimately backfire. No one is going to benefit from a trade war, and xenophobia is already bad enough. Scapegoating your neighbor for your country’s own shortcomings and policy errors is bad economics.

Mish, I don’t understand why this should shock you. Trump has been keeping all of his promises. If he were going to weasel on this one it would have been last fall after he visited Mexico after he got the nomination.

For jobs issues, the wall is not needed. Just hammer the employers of illegals 50k a head. DONE DEAL. I suggest a work visa, via Homeland Security, for migrants. After 10 years of working and no criminal record they can apply for a green card and citizenship. We can also cull some portion of their pay for health benefits. Then they are under supervision, accounted for and have a minimal safety net instead of the no man’s land they are in now. We need them, they need us but we need rule of law. Totally understandable that the USA needs a coherent policy that is not just to benefit the Democratic party’s Demographics.

Trump already gets more accomplished in his first week in office than other presidents got done in their first year

Good riddance to Barck Obozo — the worst president the US has ever had. Lets be honest enough to admit there was serious recent competition in the “worst president ever” category, but according to Gallup: Obozo managed to have an average approval rating even lower than Richard Nixon!!

I recall the Obama Administration with chin held high taking the state of Arizona to court because they wanted to enforce immigration laws. Arizona lost the case — its the responsibility of the federal government. Its settled law.

There are millions of lawful immigrant applicants who have submitted their applications, paid their fees, taken their tests, provided information for health and background checks – who are put on hold for 10 years or more from INS to live in America because there’s not enough room or jobs for them – due to illegals saturating the country!!!

How fair is that?

I want to live in a civilized nation where there is order and rule of law.

Name another 1st world nation that opens it’s borders and refuses to deport illiterates and indigent foreigners who break into their countries, use their resources, steal jobs and get free medical care and education!!!

….and look at the HORRIBLE conditions that exist in those countries and the mistreatment of their citizens at the hands of so-called immigrants who want to institute Shari law and have no intention of integrating, but would rather take over!

Mish, I have agreed with you on 99.9% of your prior posts….this one leaves me stunned. This is about border SECURITY and SECURITY of our nation and fellow citizens. A country without borders cannot survive. It is really that simple and Trump understands that as do his supporters. Anti-border control proponents cannot be in favor of a secure America. Open Borders is an invitation to a disaster. Just look at Europe as a classic example. Who wants to import the Europe experiment to America, aside from globalists, whom i despise with every fiber of my being.

I can’t believe that people think a wall will actually secure the border. It’s more symbolic than anything else and only makes the crossing a bit more challenging. From a practical standpoint it’s as effective as an ashtray on a motorbike.

Seriously, Lege? It’s not that easy. Trump is hiring lots more border guards also. No one thinks 100% of illegals can be stopped, but if 95% can be stopped, that’s huge. As it is, they just walk across.

Those that are sufficiently motivated will come. Look at the UK — they have 24 miles of sea between them and the European mainland and the joint is awash in illegals. 24 miles of sea is a much greater challenge than a large walls IMHO but I’m prepared to hold my hand up if proved wrong.

Mish, if you advocate for no wall you are indirectly supporting outcomes that are bad for America. The reason for a wall is multidimensional – the issue transcends the benefits dolled out by the government. A wall is security from very bad actors who enter our country through a porous border and impedes the inflow of drugs that are killing Americans at an alarming rate. These two very serious issues are not solved by cutting out government handouts. A wall is mandatory to address the foregoing. IMHO

In the US there are laws that foreigners cannot just move here without permission, but those laws are being openly and flagrantly ignored. So if the US is to return to the Rule of Law again, then either the laws must be changed to allow everyone to move right in, or we need that wall. Mish, I think you support the Rule of Law, so apparently you want to change the laws & let everyone just crowd right in and destroy American culture.

Summary – we have roughly 70,000 illegals in the prison system, at an average of @ $40,000. Each per year, costing the US taxpayer $2.8 Billion per year. That is for housing, food, medical care etc.

What if president Trump were to make this offer to the president of Mexico:

US prisons are overcrowded, and we need to expand available space. We would like to rent part of the Mexican prison system for 70,000 non-citizen inmates, to finish out the rest of their terms, at $15,000 per inmate per year. That will bring in $980 million to the Mexican economy per year, and allow you to create more jobs. It will also make the US judges happy, because there will no longer be over-crowding in our system. Mexico will be required to house & feed them, and our US inspectors will work with your prison system to make sure they are released timely when they have completed their sentence.

It will also serve notice on illegals coming into the US outside the law that they stand a pretty good chance of ending up in a Mexican prison instead of a nice clean US prison with free medical care. No wall will be needed, and the US taxpayers save $1.8 Billion.

That would give Trump & the congress room to decrease the harsh rhetoric, establish a dialog with pro-immigration groups, and put together a comprehensive immigration policy to reward law-abiding, employed illegals with a Green Card. The conservatives & liberals can see progress, and the productive illegals are now âlegalâ & adding to US productivity without fear.

This doesnât address the problem of welfare reform re illegals, and the private prisons will fight it, but itâs a step. What do you think?

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